UK companies have a high cyber-security rating

The UK is among the countries with the highest business cyber-security rating among several other high-profile players, according to a new report by BitSight Technologies.

BitSitght took a random sample of 250 companies per country, from the United States, the UK, Singapore, Germany, China and Brazil, looking at Security Ratings, with the goal of informing risk managers and security professionals of any potential cyber-risks in these countries.

The UK, together with Germany and the United States, has the highest aggregate Security Rating, meaning the risk in these countries is at the lowest. Companies in Brazil have the lowest aggregate Security Rating.

When it comes to preventing and mitigating machine compromises stemming from botnet infections, the UK and Germany perform the best, while the US and Brazil have the poorest performance.

Companies from all countries still have vulnerabilities in important communications protocols, including Heartbleed, POODLE and FREAK.

“Along with operational, financial and legal risk, cyber risk should be a key consideration when extending operations globally. This includes understanding the risk associated with sharing sensitive data with global partners and vendors,” said Stephen Boyer, co-founder and CTO of BitSight Technologies.

“Just as business practices and laws differ across countries, so do cybersecurity practices. When expanding globally, it is imperative to communicate best practices and establish a standard of security performance that can be implemented across the entire supply chain.”

The rating is generated by analysing elements such as compromised machines, vulnerabilities in important communication protocols, and user behaviour.